


Morse Code

by rox_fanfics



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Awesome May Parker (Spider-Man), BAMF Pepper Potts, Bisexual Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Civil War Team Captain America, Civil War Team Iron Man, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Hurt Peter Parker, Irondad, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark Friendship, May Parker (Spider-Man) & Tony Stark Coparenting Peter Parker, Multi, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Acts Like a Spider, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is a Mess, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Post-Spider-Man: Homecoming, Spider-Man: Homecoming Spoilers, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Does What He Wants, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark-centric, Uncle James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, spiderson
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:26:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,172
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24718990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rox_fanfics/pseuds/rox_fanfics
Summary: He decided to play it civil, thinking it would save everyone trouble in the long run.It’s funny, a few months ago Tony would have gladly snapped at Cap. He would have yelled, screamed, he even would have thrown in a punch or two.However, present-day Tony simply eyed Rogers’ tattered up suit, Wanda’s tear-stained face, Clint’s dirty clothes, and Barnes’ hollow eyes, then decided it wasn’t even worth his effort, they looked so broken down already, and it wasn’t Tony’s style to kick someone who was already down.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Avengers Team, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 29
Kudos: 605
Collections: Irondad + Spiderson (sometimes Rogues or Avengers)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> PETER AND TONY FEELS FOR THE SOOOOOOUUUUULLLL

Tony was sitting in the kitchen of the Avengers compound, tapping his fingers lightly on the countertop and humming an unrecognizable tune he somewhat remembered from his childhood. His mother’s sweet voice lulling him into a sense of peace and calm.

He was trying to replicate that effect at the moment, though to no avail, so far.

After months of negotiations with Ross, Steve, Barnes, and even Nat, the accords had been altered to fit the needs of all parties. But ‘The Rouges’ as people were calling them, weren’t off the hook. No, they had to be kept in check, kept in sight, and under a watchful eye. 

Who better than Tony Stark, a fellow teammate, to take up that task?

‘Anyone, honestly’ Tony thought to himself, tapping a rhythm that almost lined up with the melody but was missing something Tony couldn’t place. 

It wasn’t that he didn’t want his teammates back, he wanted them to make amends, go back to the way things were, but you can’t brush off the things that had happened so easily. 

Steve had been like a brother to him, someone he trusted to lead his team into battle, someone he made old man jokes about, someone he tried to get drunk over a dozen times since they had met and failed each time, much to everyone’s amusement. 

How had Steve betrayed him like this?   
  


Tony usually wouldn’t be so warry about letting these people into his home, but now it wasn’t just his. 

It was Peter’s too. 

Peter, the teen with a mind to rival Tony’s, beautiful doe eyes lighting up with excitement whenever Tony let him work on big projects. Peter, who he had dragged into the fight in Germany without considering the consequences. 

Sure, Peter had wanted to fight, had talked Tony’s ear off after the battle, but Tony couldn’t stop himself from wondering: ‘What if he had gotten hurt?’

It would break Tony to see Peter beat up, bloody, gasping for breath, crying out, ‘ _ I’m sorry Mr. Stark _ ’-

No, he wasn’t going to think about that. 

Peter was in the building, tinkering away in Tony’s lab and probably wondering what they would order for dinner tonight, or possibly what he would be building with Ned next weekend. Peter was  _ fine _ .

Still, the ice that ran through his veins a the thought of Peter getting hurt wasn’t something Tony needed right now, because he had to be strong for Peter, that’s what dads did right?

That’s what dads did, right?

Dad

Tony sucked in a raspy breath, shuddering as the too-cold air filled his lungs and made him feel like he was breathing in icicles. 

Usually, the team’s body heat was enough to keep the room from getting too cold, especially with Steve, he was like a human radiator.

Tony refused to touch the thermostat for months, only increasing the heat once Peter had casually mentioned that he couldn’t thermoregulate with his spider powers. 

God, Tony loved that boy. 

His boy. 

Peter

Tony was snapped out of his thoughts when the elevator door opened to reveal none other than the human radiator himself, accompanied by the guy who had stolen the heat and a few of their friends. 

“Barnes, Rogers, Barton, Wanda,” Tony acknowledged, stilling his fingers on the countertop. 

As the group of four approached, Tony started tapping again, something he had picked up form Rhodey as a nervous habit all the way from their MIT days. 

Tony had tried to stop tapping around Peter, for fear that it would irritate his senses. 

One night, however, Tony had tried to comfort Peter after a nightmare (what it was about, he wasn’t quite sure) Tony tried talking to the boy, whispering calming words, even humming a nameless tune, but none of it had calmed the spiderling. 

So, Tony started tapping nervously on Peter’s arm. 

After a moment, Peter had calmed down, leaning his head against Tony’s shoulder as the man continued to tap distractedly. 

Ever since then, Tony didn’t try to stop his tapping around Peter, simply because the boy found almost as much comfort in it as Tony did. 

“It’s good to see you, Tony,” Steve said as if they had simply been gone on a holiday, only just coming back to see their friend after a week or two apart. 

Tony wanted to snort. 

Instead, he decided to play it civil, thinking it would save everyone trouble in the long run.

It’s funny, a few months ago Tony would have gladly snapped at Cap. He would have yelled, screamed, he even would have thrown in a punch or two. 

However, present-day Tony simply eyed Rogers’ tattered up suit, Wanda’s tear-stained face, Clint’s dirty clothes, and Barnes’ hollow eyes, then decided it wasn’t even worth his effort, they looked so broken down already, and it wasn’t Tony’s style to kick someone who was already down. 

“Well, I haven’t touched your rooms, felt like it would be creepy to go through your private stuff. Contrary to popular belief, I do have morals,” Tony said, tapping some random pattern and sipping from his coffee mug.

It was a  [ mug ](https://www.google.com/search?q=cheesy+dad+mugs&safe=strict&sxsrf=ALeKk01x8QNKU6AYeSkBq8haaefx1Wg1IA:1592060760683&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj0qefAiP_pAhUTOSsKHYUWCPQQ_AUoAXoECAwQAw&biw=1438&bih=765#imgrc=fzPCq3LZfpWw1M) Peter had gotten him as a joke, but Tony found himself drinking from it every morning and bringing it with him to work on late night lab projects. 

(it was a ‘Why Dads Are Great’ pie chart that was filled with ridiculous things such as ‘Puts Up With My Crap’ and ‘Gives Great Advice’. There was also a section that said ‘Killing Spiders’ which made Tony chuckle almost every time he saw it, reminding him of his kid’s terrible sense of humor)

“Thank you, Tony, I mean it,” Steve said, looking like he might clap Tony on the shoulder before thinking better of it. 

“Barnes, do you need a room?” Tony asked, meeting the man’s eyes for the second time since he had been here. 

To his surprise, the Sargent looked lost, searching for Steve to give him the words to say. Tony almost felt bad for him, but he couldn’t help but think that the guy deserved it, at least a little bit. 

“No, Tony, Bucky’s staying with me,” Steve said, lightly grabbing Bucky’s arm. 

Tony saw how calculated his touch with Barnes was, like he was applying enough pressure to steer him, but not enough to make it seem like he  _ had _ to follow his command. 

‘I suppose they’ve had a lot of time to figure these things out’ Tony thought bitterly, tapping more on the table. 

“Who’s Peter?” Barnes asked before Steve could steer him away from the room, making Tony’s heart stop for a second.

“What?”

“Who’s Peter?” Barnes asked again, tilting his head like a curious dog, “You keep tapping his name in mores code, I was just wondering why,”

Tony froze, clutching his mug tightly in both hands, willing the heat from the coffee to warm him up. 

Of course he tapped out Peter’s name when he was stressed, what else would he do?

He shakily breathed out, then in again, “Peter is my intern, he’s been working with me for a while,”

Bucky nodded, looking like the answer had been satisfactory enough for him, much to Tony’s relief. Steve steered them both away, again, followed by the other members of their group. 

This left Tony alone again.


	2. Chapter 2

Instead of staying around to wallow in his stress and sadness, Tony decided to head down to the lab to hang out with Peter. As he walked down the hall towards his private lab, he couldn’t help but wonder how this excited doe-eyed boy had wormed his way into his cold iron heart. 

It was well known that Tony Stark didn’t ‘do’ feelings very well. Pepper, Happy, Rhodey - they were the outliers, anomalies, something that happened once in a blue moon. Tony hadn’t been prepared for another blue moon, but it had come without warning. 

Peter Parker, sitting in his shabby bedroom and explaining his web fluid wasn’t something Tony expected to react to so much, but he did. He wasn’t sure if it was the fact that the boy looked up to him, maybe it was his pure and childish innocence, or perhaps it was his excitement and readiness to fight alongside Tony. 

Whatever the reason, Tony felt himself becoming more protective over the boy every day. 

Pepper and Happy were the only people who had met Peter as more than Tony’s intern or Spiderman, Tony wanted Rhodey to meet him soon, but Rhodey was busy doing adult things. (something Tony had never had time for) 

Opening the door to the lab, Tony smiled at the sight of Peter mixing together some chemicals he had written down on a notebook for a new web fluid. 

“Hey, kiddo,” Tony grinned as Peter turned around to smile at him. 

“Hi, Mr. Stark-”

“FRIDAY, how many times have I told Peter to call me Tony?”

“453, Boss. I expect that it will soon be 454?”

“Yup. Kid, call me Tony,” Peter blushed slightly, meeting Tony’s eyes and making the billionaire smile affectionately. 

“How was the meeting?” Peter asked, returning to the web fluid he was working on. Tony sighed slightly and sat down next to Peter, looking over his shoulder at the work he had done so far. 

“It was alright, they pretty much minded their own business and I did the same,” Tony picked up the pen on the desk and scribbled something on Peter’s notes, fixing the chemical formula equation. 

“That’s good,” Peter said, stopping his work for a moment to smile at Tony who felt his heart filling with… pride? Love? It was hard to tell. 

“I do have something I needed to tell you, though,” Tony said, looking away from Peter and trying to look like he wasn’t the most nervous he had ever felt. 

Peter raised an eyebrow, noticing that Tony had started tapping on the table, “Is everything alright, Mr. Stark?”

Tony almost corrected the kid, but then decided that this wasn’t the time, “I’ve been talking to Aunt May,” he started, Peter put down his pen so he could give Tony his full attention, “You know how I think of you as my kid, it’s been like that for a while,”

Peter smiled and nodded slowly, unsure where this was going, “Well, I was wondering if we could make it official,”

Tony pulled out a file and put it on the table, seeing Peter’s eyes widen at the sight of it. 

“You better not be joking,” Peter muttered, picking up the file and opening it quickly. Tears filled his eyes as he saw the legal guardianship papers, “You’re not joking,” he said, looking up to see Tony smiling, a few tears falling down his cheeks. 

“Tony,” Peter breathed out, launching himself at the older man and holding him tightly, quietly crying into his chest. 

“This is only if you want it-”

“Of course I do!” Peter interrupted, pulling back to look Tony in the face. 

The two of them spent the next ten minutes crying and holding each other, that was until someone knocked on the lab door. 

A few weeks ago, Tony would have jumped away from Peter, but he just held his boy tighter. 

Rhodey stood in the doorway, looking confused and a little concerned at the sight of his best friend holding a strange teenager while said teenager cried into his best friend’s chest. 

“Tony, is there something you need to tell me?” Rhodey asked, looking between Tony and Peter like he was watching a tennis match. 

“Honeybear, meet Peter Parker, the boy I will be the legal guardian of, shortly,” he said, making Rhodey’s eyes widen comically. 

“Are you serious, Tones?” he asked, equal parts elated and terrified for his best friend. Tony nodded, letting go of Peter who was smiling. 

“It’s great to meet you, Cornel Rhodes-”

“Please, if you’re gonna be Tony’s kid, just call me Rhodey,”

Peter smiled his signature adorable smile and Tony felt his heart melting as Rhodey gave Peter a one-armed hug. 

“I saw Wanda in the kitchen, how are you holding up?” Rhodey asked, sitting down on another chair. 

Tony sighed, rubbing his forehead, “I’m not sure. I’m glad that we’re back together as a team, but I’m not looking forward to the ‘emotional talks’ we’ll inevitably be having, my emotion quota is three a day, and two of them are reserved for Peter and Pepper,”

Rhodey snorts a little, rolling his eyes at his best friend since college. Peter just blushes

“Do you want me to talk to them?” Peter asked after a few seconds, making Tony go silent. 

“No,” he said after a moment, “I- I’m not ready for you to meet them yet. I know that it’s selfish-”

“Mr. Stark, it’s ok, I don’t mind,” Peter smiled, making Tony’s heart swell. 

“Ok. If you really want to meet them I can’t stop you-”

“Mr. Stark,” Peter interrupted him, “it’s fine, I’ll just meet them when you’re ready,”

God, Tony loved his kid.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave a kudos and/or comment :)
> 
> You can find updates about my stories/my life on social media!
> 
> Tumblr: rox-fanfics  
> Instagram: rox_fanfics  
> Twitter: rox_fanfics  
> Tik Tok: rox_fanfics


End file.
